Lily Allen jokes that having children “ruined” her career.
The British pop singer became famous in the late 2000s with hits like “Smile,” “Fuck You,” and “Not Fair.” Her 2009 single “Who’d Have Known” was famously sampled in T-Pain’s 2011 single, “5 O’Clock” with Wiz Khalifa.
Allen welcomed daughters Ethel Mary, 12, and Marnie Rose, 11, with her ex-husband Sam Cooper, according to People. The former couple tied the knot in 2011 but divorced in 2018.
The singer’s last studio album, No Shame, was also released in 2018. However, a new podcast interview with the singer suggests that her hiatus from the music industry might be by design.
“I never really had a strategy when it comes to [a] career, but yes, my children ruined my career,” Allen told the Radio Times Podcast with a laugh. “I mean, I love them and they complete me, but in terms of, like, pop stardom? Totally ruined it.”
British humor aside, the 38-year-old singer said she intentionally chose her children over her career and that the decision was based on her own upbringing.
“It really annoys me when people say you can have it all because quite frankly you can’t. Some people choose their career over their children and that’s their prerogative,” Allen added. “But my parents were absent when I was a kid and I feel like that really left some nasty scars that I’m not willing to repeat on mine. So I chose stepping back and concentrating on them, and I’m glad that I’ve done that because I think they’re pretty well-rounded people.”
Despite her musical hiatus, Allen joined Olivia Rodrigo to perform her hit “Fuck You” at the 2022 Glastonbury festival, dedicating it to the U.S. Supreme Court justices for their decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the law that ensured a woman’s legal right to a safe abortion.
In the meantime, Allen is putting her efforts into raising her children and her new BBC podcast Miss Me? with co-host Miquita Oliver.
